Sharda Motor Industries Hiring Senior Manager – Production in Pune

Sharda Motor Industries Ltd. is hiring an experienced Senior Manager – Production for its manufacturing facility at Chakan-3, Pune, Maharashtra. The company is looking for a production leader who can manage manufacturing operations, improve productivity, control losses, strengthen quality, and lead teams toward operational excellence.

This opportunity is suitable for professionals with strong experience in automotive production, manufacturing operations, OEE improvement, manpower management, quality systems, cost reduction, and continuous improvement.

Senior Manager – Production Job Overview

• Position: Senior Manager – Production
• Company: Sharda Motor Industries Ltd.
• Location: Chakan-3, Pune
• Industry: Automotive Manufacturing
• Qualification: BE/B.Tech in Production, Mechanical or equivalent
• Experience: Relevant experience in production management in the automotive manufacturing industry
• Department: Production / Manufacturing

About Sharda Motor Industries

Sharda Motor Industries is an automotive manufacturing company involved in the development and production of automotive components and systems. The company focuses on manufacturing excellence, quality, productivity, innovation, and customer satisfaction.

The Senior Manager – Production will play an important role in achieving production targets while improving operational efficiency, quality, safety, and cost performance.

Key Responsibilities

The selected candidate will be responsible for leading production operations and ensuring that manufacturing targets are achieved efficiently.

Key responsibilities include:

• Prepare daily production plans according to customer requirements and production schedules.
• Monitor OEE, machine utilization, productivity, and manufacturing efficiency.
• Coordinate with Production, Quality, SCM, Maintenance, and other departments.
• Identify bottlenecks and implement corrective actions to improve production output.
• Minimize rejection, rework, breakdowns, material wastage, and production losses.
• Analyze production trends and implement improvement initiatives.
• Manage manpower allocation, productivity, skill development, and shop-floor discipline.
• Handle customer complaints and coordinate corrective actions.
• Maintain production documentation, Control Plans, SOPs, and Work Instructions.
• Ensure compliance with IATF 16949, ISO 14001, and ISO 45001 requirements.
• Drive Kaizen, Lean Manufacturing, TPM, and continuous improvement activities.
• Develop cost-reduction initiatives related to material, manpower, energy, and process efficiency.
• Ensure 100% adherence to production and delivery commitments.
• Promote safe working practices and ensure compliance with EHS requirements.

Required Skills and Competencies

Candidates should have strong leadership and manufacturing-management capabilities.

Important skills include:

• Production planning and manufacturing operations
• OEE and productivity improvement
• Lean Manufacturing and TPM
• Quality management systems
• Root cause analysis and problem solving
• Manpower management
• Cost reduction and process optimization
• Customer complaint handling
• Team leadership
• Strong communication and decision-making skills
• Knowledge of automotive manufacturing processes

Experience with suspension systems, welding, auto/manual production systems, ERP/SAP, Poka-Yoke, and related automotive manufacturing processes will be useful for this role.

Qualification and Experience

Candidates should have a BE/B.Tech degree in Production, Mechanical Engineering, or a related discipline. The role is intended for professionals who have relevant experience in automotive manufacturing and production management.

An MBA in Operations or a similar qualification focused on productivity and operations can be an additional advantage.

Why Consider This Senior Manager – Production Job?

This position offers an opportunity to take ownership of large-scale manufacturing operations and contribute directly to productivity, quality, cost, delivery, and safety performance.

Professionals interested in moving into senior production leadership can gain exposure to cross-functional management, operational excellence, customer quality, manpower development, and continuous improvement.

How to Apply

Interested candidates can share their updated resume with the recruitment team.

📩 Apply Email: priya.tiwari@shardamotor.com

Candidates should highlight their experience in automotive production, OEE improvement, team management, quality improvement, TPM, Lean Manufacturing, cost reduction, and manufacturing process optimization in their CV.

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10 Interview Questions and Answers for Senior Manager – Production

1. What are your responsibilities as a Production Manager?

Answer:
My responsibility is to ensure that production targets are achieved safely, efficiently, and according to the required quality standards. I focus on manpower planning, machine utilization, production planning, OEE, rejection reduction, productivity improvement, cost control, and on-time delivery. I also coordinate closely with Quality, Maintenance, PPC, SCM, and Engineering teams to resolve shop-floor issues.

2. How do you improve OEE in a manufacturing plant?

Answer:
I first analyze the three major components of OEE: Availability, Performance, and Quality. I identify the largest losses such as breakdowns, setup time, minor stoppages, reduced cycle speed, rejection, and rework. After identifying the major losses, I use tools such as Pareto analysis, Why-Why Analysis, Kaizen, TPM, SMED, and Poka-Yoke to address the root causes.

3. How would you reduce production rejection?

Answer:
I would start by analyzing rejection data using Pareto charts and identifying the major defect categories. I would then conduct root cause analysis using 5 Why, Fishbone Analysis, PFMEA, Control Plan, and process audits. Corrective actions should address the actual process cause rather than simply sorting defective parts. After implementation, I would monitor the defect trend to verify effectiveness.

4. How do you handle manpower shortages during production?

Answer:
I prioritize production requirements and allocate available manpower according to process criticality and skill level. I maintain a skill matrix to identify multi-skilled operators who can support critical operations. Cross-training, proper line balancing, overtime where necessary, and temporary manpower deployment can help maintain production without compromising quality or safety.

5. What is your approach to reducing manufacturing cost?

Answer:
I analyze the major cost contributors such as material consumption, rejection, rework, manpower, energy, cycle time, downtime, tooling, and machine utilization. Improvement opportunities can come from yield improvement, cycle-time reduction, process optimization, VA/VE, energy reduction, and waste elimination. I also track the financial benefit of each improvement project.

6. How do you handle a major customer complaint?

Answer:
The first priority is containment. I ensure that potentially affected material is identified and controlled. After containment, the team performs root cause analysis using structured methods such as 8D, 5 Why, and Fishbone Analysis. Corrective and preventive actions are then implemented and validated. Finally, the effectiveness of the action is monitored to prevent recurrence.

7. What is the role of TPM in production?

Answer:
TPM helps improve equipment reliability, availability, and productivity by involving production and maintenance teams in equipment care. Activities such as Autonomous Maintenance, Planned Maintenance, Kaizen, condition monitoring, and breakdown analysis help reduce equipment losses. TPM also develops operator ownership of machine conditions.

8. How do you ensure production targets are achieved without affecting quality?

Answer:
Production and quality should not be treated as separate objectives. I ensure that operators follow standardized work, Control Plans, SOPs, inspection requirements, and process parameters. I continuously monitor production and quality KPIs together. If output increases but rejection also increases, the improvement is not sustainable.

9. How do you manage a difficult shop-floor team?

Answer:
I first understand the actual problem and communicate expectations clearly. I believe in setting measurable targets and explaining why the target is important. Regular communication, fair treatment, training, recognition of good performance, and involvement of employees in Kaizen activities help build ownership and discipline.

10. What KPIs do you monitor in production?

Answer:
Important production KPIs include OEE, productivity, output achievement, rejection PPM, rework percentage, downtime, cycle time, changeover time, manpower productivity, production cost, energy consumption, and on-time delivery. I also monitor safety indicators and improvement-project performance because production improvement should never compromise safety or quality.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the location of the Senior Manager – Production vacancy?

The position is based at Chakan-3, Pune, Maharashtra.

What qualification is required?

Candidates should have a BE/B.Tech in Production, Mechanical Engineering, or a related discipline. An operations-focused postgraduate qualification can be an additional advantage.

What type of experience is preferred?

Relevant experience in automotive manufacturing and production management is preferred.

What skills are important for this position?

Key skills include OEE, production management, Lean Manufacturing, TPM, quality management, manpower management, cost reduction, problem solving, and operational excellence.

Is this a shop-floor leadership role?

Yes. The role requires strong involvement in manufacturing operations, production performance, manpower management, quality improvement, and coordination with cross-functional teams.

How can candidates apply?

Candidates can send their updated CV to priya.tiwari@shardamotor.com.

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Interview Preparation Tips

Before applying or attending the interview, candidates should prepare practical examples of:

• An OEE improvement project they personally handled.
• A major rejection or rework problem and how they eliminated its root cause.
• A successful cost-reduction or productivity-improvement project.
• Their experience in TPM, Kaizen, Lean Manufacturing, or Poka-Yoke.
• Manpower planning and handling of production teams.
• A difficult customer complaint and the corrective action taken.
• Production target achievement during capacity or manpower constraints.
• Experience with IATF 16949, ISO 14001, and ISO 45001.
• How they calculate and improve machine and manpower productivity.
• A real example where they improved quality, cost, delivery, or safety.

Job Summary: Senior Manager – Production | Sharda Motor Industries Ltd. | Chakan-3, Pune | Automotive Manufacturing | BE/B.Tech | Apply at priya.tiwari@shardamotor.com.